Peer rejection refers to the failure of children to be socially accepted by their peers. 5. From an early age until adulthood, school is a place where children spend a large portion of their daysand, indeed, their lives. The argument that because school teachers are almost exclusively female, schools are a place where male interests are not cultivated. Want to create or adapt books like this? Raby and Domitrek (2007) state that this kind of rule creation and enforcement creates a negative environment where teachers are involved in petty policing and frustrates students who would prefer to challenge the rules in more constructive ways than by breaking them. Critics argue, however, that further demarcating tasks as masculine and feminine continues to promote very narrow gender roles (Greig 2003). WebSome kids need extra help learning and following social rules. Sustainability | Free Full-Text | Analysis of Students’ For example, the government funds public schools, which play a key role in children's socialization. This type of aggression is often simply referred to as meanness. His teacher Opponents of streaming note that those from disadvantaged and working-class backgrounds are disproportionately found in the vocational stream (Cheung 2007; Davies and Guppy 2006). For females, clothes that reveal too much of the body are explicitly banned, while for males, styles of dress associated with hip-hop music (i.e., being able to see boxer shorts above the waistband of a males jeans) are targeted. The structure of school and the structure of the family are obviously very different. Current practices appear to reflect the desire to create obedient future employees or citizens (Raby 2005). The Safe Schools Act changed the policy to one of mandatory suspensions and expulsions and police involvement for particular rule infractions, provided that mitigating factors were taken into account. WebInterests. Victim characteristics also differ by gender, as male victims are often not tough (Shakeshaft and Barber 1995). School as an Agent of Socialization - 570 Words | Essay Example Teachers, however, shape the socialization of students by other processes as well, which are discussed below. 7 & 10(Accessed March 2012). They tell us what to do, almost like whats right and whats wrong. 4. Language arts and science, as mentioned above, are also often divided into applied and academic trajectories. Research in British Columbia around this policy has also found that those who are disciplined under zero tolerance policies are more likely to have disabilities or be racial minorities (Cassidy and Jackson 2005). The latter is oriented for someone who wishes to achieve university or post-secondary prerequisites (see Box 6.2 for some comparisons of applied and academic trajectories in Canada). It is implied, however, that more male role models in the classroom would improve boys improvementbut critics again argue that this view relies on a single vision of masculinity that is assumed to be the same among all male teachers (Greig 2003). This group tended to care the least about schoolwork and did not participate in extracurricular activities. Agents of Socialization: Family, Schools, Peers and Media Major agents of socialization include the family and school, but also the media, peer groups, and other major social institutions such as religion and the legal system. More participatory models of school rule enforcement and creation do exist, however, such as in alternative schools (see Box 6.4). In order to address the boy problem, the Ontario Ministry of Education has created guides for improving boys literacy.8 Booklets called Me Read? This, in turn, influenced students motivation and performance. For example, in 2010, two Winnipeg teachers were under investigation after performing a sexually suggestive dirty dance at a high school dance competition. Academics as a group mostly consisted of brains who did well in their studies and extracurricular activities that were academically oriented. In school, we also learn social skills through our interactions with teachers, staff, and other students. There are, however, a significant number of children, not only in Canada but in the United States and beyond, that do not attend school in the way that has been described here. Researchers have determined that bully victims are weak in temperament (Hodges and Perry 1999; Smith and Myron-Wilson 1998), lack physical strength (Bernstein and Watson 1997; Hodges and Perry 1999; Smith and Myron-Wilson 1998), and are somehow different in terms of looks (including race), dress, or physical ability (Bernstein and Watson 1997; Fried 1997). School administrators argued that the girls were in violation of the school dress code and that the practice had been banned by school because the duct tape outfits had become too racy in previous years.7. 2010). The series of courses a student should take that best matches his or her abilities and aptitudes; also known as tracking. 1982). In addition to social class distinctions in streaming, racial minority students are also overrepresented in the bottom groups of streaming ability (Oakes 2005). Adapted from Dreeben, Robert, 1968, On What is Learned in School, Percheron Press, A Division of Eliot Werner Publications, Inc., Used with permission. Gender Socialization. School uniforms became more widely implemented in the public school system in the United States in the 1980s and 1990s when school policies were put in place in an effort to control gang activities and increase safety at schools (Han 2010). A child must develop skills that allow him or her to function socially, emotionally, and intellectually within the school environment. Studies have found that classrooms in the lower tracks have a variety of less desirable characteristics that undoubtedly impact on the learning of students such as less experienced teachers, less challenging coursework, and teachers with lower expectations of students (Katz 1999). (2010), such conditions can only negatively impact the achievements of these students and further constrain their post-secondary prospects. What are the rationales given for dress codes and school uniforms? 4.2 Explaining Socialization Sociology - University of Minnesota The next section addresses the techniques that are used within schools to socialize children into being desirable students. The school setting now begins to take on some of the roles that previously only family members fulfilledbut in markedly different ways. The school rules, which must be followed by students, exist at the core. Placing students in special education, for example, requires that students be labelled as formally needing specialized assistance in order to succeed with curricular expectations (Hibel, Farkas, and Morgan 2010). The alternative peer groups found in most middle and secondary schools can also be thought of as a form of youth resistance. Describe how school rules, codes of conduct, and dress codes impact on the socialization of students. But curriculum is just one aspect. The narrowing of standardized test scores between males and femalesand across countrieshowever, strongly points to the differences as being cultural constructions that are shifting as the result of changing norms of socialization (Penner 2008). Brint (1998) notes that young children, for example, may be assigned reading material that warns of the consequences of not having such virtues. In what major ways is the organization of the family different from the organization of the school? Socialization So far, it has been argued that children must adapt to features of school that are much different from their family environments. In terms of outreach, students must participate weekly (Wednesdays between 9 a.m. and 12 p.m.) in a community volunteer activity for which they receive no payment. 2007)depending on who is doing them. Identify how the role of the family differs from the role of the school in the socialization process. (2007) found that across numerous studies from the English-speaking world, peer groups generally fell into five very broad categories: elites, athletes, deviants, academics, and others. Sociology of Education in Canada by Dr. Karen L. Robson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted. Such factors may include the ability of the student to control his or her own behaviour (Daniel and Bondy 2008). 2007), teens in the deviant groups tended to have lower self-esteem and life satisfaction compared to other groups, and also tended to have poor parenting. In February of 2011, news broke that a six-year-old boy in Laval, Quebec, had been excluded from a school teddy bear contest because he had a plastic sandwich bag in his lunch, which violated the school rules on environmentally friendly lunch containers.5 Many environmental initiatives have been adopted by schools across Canada. The school setting is where the learning of the new role as a student occurs. There are various reasons that parents choose to home school their children. See Box 6.3 for further discussion about zero tolerance policies in Canada. The process of a student internalizing the preferred understanding of what is right and wrong; accomplished through teachers emphasizing the desirability of certain virtues, such as hard work, equity, being nice, and so on. How do relationships with teachers influence the socialization of students? What are some examples of streaming? She notes that while dress code infractions for girls typically are focused on body containment (e.g., showing too much cleavage), for boys it is about containing ethnic or racial identities. How do the Curricula of Different Provinces Compare on Controversial Subjects? And How! They found that popular girls held the most power and displayed this power in their ability to police the adherence to numerous unspoken rules about other girls dress and behaviour. Medlin (2000) has noted that research on whether or not home schooled children experience adequate socialization is sparse and that which does exist often has hallmarks of poor research design and biased samples. Many children arrive at school with behavioural problems and emotional needs that are not met in the family environment. Previous explanations of males outperformance of females in science and mathematics suggested that biological factors predisposed males to be better at more technical subjects than females. Popular girls and boys also tended to be part of high-status school-sponsored school activities, namely cheerleading (for girls) and team sports (for boys). The overall socialization of children, as theorized by Bronfenbrenner (see Chapter 2), is dispersed into various realms which focus on the different sites of social context that children experience in their lives. And they appear to be functioning effectively as members of adult society (p. 119). The inner ring is characterized by explicit moral instruction. As Krahn and Taylor (2007) argue, students from disadvantaged backgrounds may have the ability to succeed in advanced academic courses, but an assortment of other factors may be reducing their likelihood of taking these courses. Social As noted by Wentzel and Looney (2006), there are several different social realities to which a child must adapt: In addition to learning different behaviours that are appropriate for school, there are also structural features of school to which children must adapt. In many provinces, courses in math, science, and English are divided into those that lead to post-secondary education options (e.g., university) and those that do not. WebSocialization is the cultural process of learning to participate in a social group. The Quebec researchers also found that the likelihood of a child experiencing verbal abuse from a teacher is also fairly consistent across grades, such that when students start a new year with a new teacher, they are likely to encounter the same kind of interactions. Box 6.4 Alternative Approaches to School Rules. An analysis of the relationship between character and citizenship education revealed that the overarching message was to promote assimilation into Canadian society (Winton 2007).4. The physical and emotional abuse experienced by children from other childrenotherwise known as bullying. The Consumer Mathematics curriculum addresses financial management, career exploration, home ownership and maintenance, as well as more traditional topics such as trigonometry and statistics. 2010). A teacher, for example, is largely in charge of the student, but the relationship that a child has with a teacher is far less intimate than the relationship a child shares with his or her parents; A student must also adapt to spending a significant amount of time in large groups; A child must learn to be independent to achieve the academic goals of school; A child must also learn to form bonds and develop social bonds with other children in school; and. When peer group relationships are positive, it is reasonable to assume that the school environment is a supportive and potentially enjoyable one. During the process of cultural conformity, children learn about accepted perspectives and styles of expression. Explicit moral instruction occurs in the elementary grades, when children are socialized to aspire to virtues such as kindness, generosity, courage, and hard work. Often such students have difficult home lives and such supports may be lacking in the home environment. The skills that allow an individual to function within society; in the school setting, it is achieved when students embrace and achieve socially sanctioned goals. Because reading is highly associated with overall academic achievement and later-life occupational attainment, this is a problem that has tremendous sociological implications. Characteristics of children that may be perceived to threaten classroom management may attract negative attention from teachers. All of these examples require the student to self-regulate his or her bodys physical actions in ways that the child may not have had to do in a family setting. According to Simmons (2002), there are rules for how good girls act, and participating in overt acts of violence does not conform to this role. In contrast, Pre-calculus mathematics is described as designed for students who will be continuing studies at the post-secondary level in fields related to mathematics and science. Socialization Examples in Sociology Such factors include parental influence, lack of role models, and the lowered expectations of teachers. Theories in the Sociology of Education, 3. Examples of teachers acting in morally suggestive ways occasionally make it into the mainstream media. Raby (2005) further argues that school codes of conduct reflect middle-class, often White, and rather gendered values. Students may have to stand in orderly lines in order to have a drink of water. This finding points to important differences in provincial educational policies and practices with regard to streaming. Recall from Chapter 2 that Boudon discussed how secondary effectslike the aforementioned characteristicscan impact on educational attainment because they influence the types of educational choices made by a student and his or her family. This difference may be due to ethnic group membership, disability, physical attractiveness, or being a newcomer to the classroom (Asher et al. Socialization Research Paper